Xion's First Christmas
by MidnightSchemer13
Summary: Xion and Vanitas, two exchange students from Halloween Town, move to Radiant Garden to finish their studies, but both of them receive a holiday surprise when their new friend, Ventus, takes them out for Christmas shopping. Important info inside! Songfic


Xion sighed as she stared out the window at the grey clouds overcasting the sky. Her elbow on the windowsill and her chin in her hand, she watched dully as the people of Radiant Garden went about their own business, ignoring the dark-haired girl in the second-story window nearly mad with boredom.

She turned around to look at the handsome teenage boy sitting at their circular table, his dark spiked hair almost touching the paper he was writing on, so concentrated was he.

"Vanitas! I'm _bored_," she called out, hoping to ensnare his attention, and perhaps have him entertain her. Vanitas looked up for the briefest of moments, the flickering candlelight lighting up his golden eyes, before returning to his homework.

"Good for you. Hush." Xion rolled her eyes and left her seat by the window, walking instead over to the kitchen to grab an apple. It was one native to Halloween Town, and very expensive to buy, for it was rare and possessed an exotic taste. The fruit was a dark and yet pale globe, with translucent, warm skin covering a faint blush red: the core of the apple. Xion, who had a fondness for apples that almost rivaled that of Vanitas's, had brought an entire bushel with them during their move, and luckily so, as the strange globes had the ability to sate her hunger and clear her head. Biting into the juicy fruit, she munched for a few quiet minutes before glancing back over at him.

"I'm so bored I might go _insane_, Vanitas," she commented offhandedly. Luckily for him, she did not see Vanitas smirk at her words.

"That's nice. Now _shush_. I'm working on Professor Even's essay." Xion glared long and hard at him and threw a pencil, which had been innocently lying on the counter, at his head. With almost inhuman precision, he caught it in his long, pale hand without even turning around, and placed it down onto the table. With an exaggerated sigh, she took another bite of the strange, pale apple.

"You know," she said around the fruit, "You could have turned that in during class. We had enough time to finish it." Vanitas set his raven-feather quill down and grinned.

"Yes, but I was busy being admired by the girls in our class, so I couldn't work on it with them distracting me." Xion blushed slightly as a flare of jealousy shot through her, but she shook her head and quickly pushed down the feelings, taking yet another bite of the apple.

"True," she said, "But you could have told them to scream off and leave you alone." Vanitas leaned back, pushing the chair onto its back two legs, and crossed his arms behind his head.

"Now, why would I want to do a thing like that?" Xion hmph-ed and whirled around, turning her back on him and crossing her arms. He knew she disliked all of the other girls attending the classes they took except Naminé, and enjoyed teasing her about it. The black-haired girl tossed a glance over her shoulder at him.

"You enjoy their attention _far _too much for your own good." Vanitas smirked.

"Yep." But then, Xion smirked as well and tossed a spider-thread around the chair's legs; yanking, she pulled the rickety chair out from under him and sent her friend crashing to the floor. "_Hey!_" The teen girl stifled giggles behind a pale hand as Vanitas glared at her, his piercing gold eyes becoming sharper. He opened his mouth, about to say something, then thought better of it, and picked himself up off of the floor.

"Shut up," he muttered, but Xion didn't miss the slight smile on his face.

And just like that, the situation returned to the boring norm it was five minutes ago. Xion took a final bite of her apple and tossed the core into the rubbish bin, before, as she chewed, taking long steps to the red, battered armchair in front of the TV. Dropping herself down on it, she dangled her feet off of the arm and swung them, one-two-one-two, in a steady beat. Quietly, minutes passed, broken only by the scratching of Vanitas's quill on the parchment as he continued writing about the mechanics of the human heart. Xion sighed, her breath scented of sweet, rotten apples ticking her nose.

"Halloween Town was much more interesting," she said to no one in particular. On the ceiling, her two pet spiders wove increasingly larger webs; already three flies were caught in the sticky strands. "We were never bored, and there was always something to do. You had to be careful before you went to sleep, and we were always on our toes, ready for a scream. Here, everyone's all bland and normal and _boring_. I wish there was something _new _for me to do..." Vanitas sighed as he placed down his black quill onto the paper, as he stared at the back of the large armchair.

"Xion, we've only been here for a week. Maybe you should study if you're that bored. I'll be done in a few minutes; if you want, we can watch a movie or something afterwards." The girl twisted her body to look at him and smiled.

"That'd be awesome! What should we watch? _Interdiction _just came out, and then there's _Crown of Guilt_, _Omega Trinity_, _Brightcrest Rainfell_..." Vanitas looked at her with an amused expression on his face.

"Xion, the more you talk, the more I'll listen, and the less I'll write, and the later we'll be able to watch." Xion opened her mouth to retort, saw the truth in his words, and quickly covered her mouth with her hands, staying completely quiet.

Vanitas smiled at the silence and continued writing, nearing the end of the scroll of parchment, and began writing his conclusion for the essay, when––

"Are you done yet?"

––Xion asked him the infamous question. Though it had indeed been six minutes or so since she'd shut up, Vanitas mentally groaned at Xion's barely suppressed ADHD.

"Not yet." There was another pause as he continued writing his conclusion, finally reaching the last sentence, when––

"How about now?" Vanitas seriously considered fishing a pickled, disembodied head from one of the jars lining the shelves and flinging it at his roommate, but decided against it, not wanting to clean up the mess the juice would make on the carpet, and not wanting to end up with her knife in his head.

The last time she had done that, it had taken weeks for him to heal, and he was always dizzy, unable to walk straight. Should she do it now, it would take a lot of explaining to the Professors as to why he had stitches in the middle of his forehead, and why, behind them, there was a deep gash. He sighed and ignored her, and just finished writing the last word and period when Xion grew impatient at his lack of answer.

"Vani––"

"I'm _done_!" he said, and, with a tired grin, held up the paper for Xion to see. The teenage girl smiled happily and jumped over, hugging her friend 'round the middle, when suddenly her phone rang.

~~~ _This is Halloween, this is Halloween; pumpkins scream in the dead of night! This is_–– ~~~

"_Xion?_" asked a male voice as the dark-haired girl flipped her phone open. She held it to her ear with two fingers, cocking her head to the side.

"Ventus? Is that you?" The voice laughed slightly through the phone.

"Yeah. Lucky guess?" Xion shrugged.

"Not really. What's up?" Detaching herself from Vanitas, she ran back over to the couch and flopped down, curling her feet underneath her. She could almost _hear _Ventus grin.

"Want to hang out? I was planning to go to the Disney Town shopping center... Vanitas can come too." Xion glanced over at her dark-haired friend, who shrugged and raised an eyebrow.

"You wanted something new; we've never been there before, so why don't we go?" Xion nodded with a smile.

"Sure! We'll go. Where are you?"

"I'll reach your dorm in a few." Xion opened her mouth to reply when the doorbell cut her off.

_BZZEEEEP_

Vanitas opened the creaky door to reveal a tall, blond youth, with a smile on his face and eyes as brilliantly blue as Xion's.

"That was fast." Ventus merely grinned and stepped into the room, wincing as the door creaked loudly behind him.

"Yeah. Er... Maybe you should oil your door-hinges?" Xion jumped off of the armchair, and shyly folded her hands behind her, smiling at the tall blond.

"Why? We're used to it, and our doors in Halloween Town always creaked! The ones here in the Garden..." she shivered. "They're so quiet. You can't tell if someone opened them or not. So! Where and what is the Disney Town shopping center?" Both Ventus and Vanitas blinked at her abrupt change of subject, but Ventus recovered quickly.

"You'll love it," he said with a smile. "I've been there plenty of times with Terra and Aqua, and it's a really large market place with lots of fun things to do and see." Vanitas raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms.

"Sounds exactly what you were looking for, Xion." She nodded once, enthusiastically.

"Alright; then let's go!"

* * *

><p>The trip to the shopping center took about ten minutes, with Ventus driving them in his monochrome car, but soon, the sights of lights and decorations reached Xion and Vanitas's visions, awing them (though Vanitas would never admit it out loud).<p>

"Hold on. What's this? We're far away from home," said Xion; the scene before her was absolutely nothing like the normal and boring environment of Radiant Garden. Ventus grinned and shook his head.

"Not yet, we're still in the RG."

"You're serious? But everything looks so new and unpredictable and cool and so incredible... What's this?" Xion pointed at something far in the distance, and Ventus apologetically shrugged, unable to look as he was still driving. He soon parked in the car lot, and Vanitas and Xion quickly got out, staring at the Disney Town shopping center. Ventus locked his car and grinned at their reactions. Xion grabbed Ventus's hand and pointed at some costumed people and various decorations as they walked closer.

"What's this? What's this? I sense magic in the air!"

"Hold still! Xion, there's a spider in your hair," grinned Vanitas. Xion laughed.

"No way! Let's keep it! You know how I don't care; I'm not like Naminé or Kairi. Let's go there! Oops, I'm sorry. What's this?" She muffled her giggles as she apologized for accidentally smacking Ventus's face while gesturing flamboyantly with her hands. Ventus began to explain when more decorations and lights caught Xion's attention.

"What's this? What's this? There's color everywhere. What's this? There's white powder in the air. What's this? I can't believe my eyes!"_ I must be dreaming!__ Wake up, Xion, this isn't fair! What's this? _She reached her hand out towards the sky as snow began falling, gasping as the soft, cold sensation of the tiny snowflake before it melted into water on her fingers. Ventus smiled at her, and cupped a hand out to catch some white powder to show her.

"This is _snow_," he explained. "It's like frozen rain; they're tiny crystals, and no two are exactly the same."

"_Wow_," breathed Xion, as Vanitas, to her side, examined his surroundings with a mixed expression.

"What's this? What's this? There's something very wrong." He frowned. "What's this? There are people singing songs. What's this? The streets are lined with little children laughing; everybody seems so happy. Have I possibly gone daffy? What is this?" They had only just arrived, so the people couldn't _possibly _be happy because of him; but _why_ would the shoppers and staff here be chatting and cheering over some wreaths and lights, and strange decorations that looked like striped hooks and silver and gold bells? _What's this? _

There were children throwing snowballs, instead of throwing heads. Workers here were busy building toys and there was no one walking, dead. There was frost on every window, and the two couldn't believe their eyes; and deep inside Vanitas he felt the warmth coming from inside.

Ventus smiled as Xion led him to the closest shop, looking at the screen flashing advertisements and video clips. She looked through the window and saw two adults decorating the inside of the store, and gestured towards them, asking Ventus.

"Hey, look! What's this? They're hanging mistletoe, they kiss?" She made a face, prompting Vanitas to laugh at her childishness. She then pointed at a holiday-themed chandelier. "Why that looks so unique, inspired!" A video clip from a movie caught her attention. "They're gathering around to hear a story! Roasting chestnuts on a fire? What's this?" Ventus took a deep breath, sorting out Xion's stream of questions in his head, and chose to only answer the most recent one.

"During the winter, we roast chestnuts, and you'll have to try some; they're delicious! Don't you have chestnuts in your town?" Xion shook her head, still trying to believe how strange and wonderful this new place was, and attempting to understand exactly _why _she'd never heard of the place before; with all of this... this_ newness_, she could stay entertained for _days_.

"We toss chestnuts and acorns at each other, and we play with fire, but we've never combined them. Hey! We should throw _flaming _chestnuts when we get home, eh, Vanitas?" Vanitas smirked cruelly at the idea as he considered it, thinking of all the trouble they could get into, and how it'd be _worth _every bit of it just to see his brother Sora's clothes catch on fire (or maybe he could accidentally "miss" and burn a hole in Sora's coffin... oh! Or maybe, chuck a flaming chestnut in his father's wine, and make it a red-wine-molotov! _That _would be fun). They passed several other stores, with Xion pointing things out (a bit slower, as Ventus was having some trouble keeping up), and her blond friend answering her questions, when they reached the large tree in the middle of the shopping center. Xion took Vanitas's pale arm and pulled him over to the overproportionalized tree. _What's this? _

"Over here, look! They've got a large pine tree. How queer!" Vanitas gave it a puzzled look, full of intrigue and misunderstanding.

"But who would ever think, and why? They're covering it with tiny little things. They've got electric lights on strings, and there's a smile on everyone––" Ventus jogged over with a grin.

"So, now, correct me if I'm wrong––"

"Ooh! That looks like fun, that looks like fun! Oh, could it be I got my wish? What's _this_?" Xion excitedly clapped her hands and made her way to the Doll Village, a miniaturized copy of their current section of town, as a sort of play-and-rest area for the small children. Ventus and Vanitas groaned at her ADHD-like manner, and followed her with twin grins on their faces.

"Oh great, what now?"

"Look! The children are asleep. But look," Xion gestured in confusion underneath the beds. "There's nothing underneath! No ghouls, no witches there to scream and scare them, or ensnare them, only little cozy things secure inside their dreamland." She frowned; Vanitas walked over, bewilderment on his face. _What's this? _

"The monsters are all missing, and the nightmares can't be found; and in their place there seems to be good feeling all around." He tilted his head as the speakers streamed out carols and holiday-songs. "Instead of screams, I swear I can hear music in the air. The smell of cakes and pies is absolutely everywhere..." He sighed as the sweet smell brought back nostalgia as he remembered the mountains of candy regularly found back home. Grinning mischievously, he took Xion by the hand (who, by extension, had Ventus's hand as well) and led her into the nearby bakery to buy their pastries; though he was slightly disappointed that they had no Cannibal's Delight (a pie made to look as though it was made with human meat, when it was actually baked with rabbit) or Dark Chocolate and Hemoglobin Cake (the woman at the counter looked at him strangely as Ventus hastily explained that they were from Halloween Town), he was rather satisfied with what he bought: a holiday fruit cake slice, with candied berries, apricots, and fruits inside. Xion bought a sea-salt ice-cream cake slice (though it was cold outside), and Ventus bought a berry shortcake. They made small conversation, eating their sweets happily, and as she finished, Xion twirled around in the falling snow, steadily falling faster and clumping on the ground.

"The sights, the sounds! They're everywhere and all around," she hugged herself tightly. "I've never felt so good before! This empty place inside of me is filling up, I simply cannot get enough! I want it, oh, I want it! Oh, I want it for my own! I've got to know, I've got to know: what is this... this _thing _that I have found? What is this?" She thrust her hands up in the air, facing the large tree, as she panted slightly from her little dance. Vanitas grasped her thin middle and swung her up and around, to face the large banner hanging from the store, with large, bolded, red, green, and white letters spelling out:

**M E R R Y C H R I S T M A S ! ! ! **

"...Christmas?" Ventus swallowed the last chunk of his cake and grinned as he tossed his trash away in a recycling bin, as Vanitas gently lowered his stitched and patched friend.

"Yeah, you didn't know? This holiday... this whole _theme _right here, right now, is Christmas."

Xion tilted her head curiously.

"What _is _Christmas?" she asked curiously, staring at Ventus with a childish delight. Ventus sighed, and tugged her over to a different store, one with books (with some trouble, as Vanitas had her other arm and was quite reluctant to let go: he was attempting to lead her the opposite direction, to a shop full of glass objects), and pointed to some items in the window.

"Christmas is always on the twenty-fifth of every December, and is the date when Jesus was born to the Virgin Mary in Bethlehem. Three wise men gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, and––"

"Franken-_what?_"

"Frankincense. It's not... not what you're thinking. It's a valuable treasure, and was one of the gifts given to the baby Jesus." Xion nodded, only understanding the bare gist of it, and picked at some of the threaded stitches connecting her forearm to her elbow.

"So... That's why there're wrapped up boxes piled there?" She pointed at the pile underneath the tree. "Presents?" Ventus nodded, smiling.

"Yeah! It's the season for giving and caring, and we show that by making gifts for our families and friends, and giving them to those we care on Christmas morning." Xion pouted very, very slightly.

"Not Christmas-the-night-before?" Ventus shook his head.

"Nope." Xion thought for a moment, turning shy again, and losing her curiosity.

"You know... we should have a Christmas on the 25th! We'll all get presents for each other and exchange them!" She turned to Vanitas. "What should I give you?" The dark-haired teen, who had been impatiently waiting to lead her to the glass store, rolled his eyes.

"A sedative, so I can knock you out and finally get some _peace_." Xion grinned and hugged him.

"I know you don't mean that. Seriously, though." Vanitas shrugged, before pointing at a blue cat's-eye-like gem encircled in a black and red gear-like pendant on display in the glass shop.

"That'd be nice, except I wouldn't know since you two won't let me _go there_." Taking the hint, Ventus followed the his classmate to the store, where he visibly brightened, and looked at the glassware happily. A female worker, dressed in red and green, waved at them.

"Merry Christmas!" she greeted, as they entered the store. Xion glanced at Ventus.

"Mary Christmas?" She was caught off guard as the blond laughed at her words.

"No no no, _Merry _Christmas. Not... Hahaha, not Mary." Xion blushed a little at his comment, and examined the pendant Vanitas said he'd like. It was beautiful, though looking mechanical and somewhat void, and looked almost like a key, if she turned her head _just so_.

It didn't matter that she had only just found out the existence of the magical holiday: Xion was now determined to have one herself back home to share with all of her friends, and perhaps add her own theme to it to remind her a bit of home; but she'd have to know all about it first. No matter: she could always ask Ventus.

As soon as Vanitas and Ventus moved on to a different store, Xion pretended to go to the Ladies' Room to wash her hands free from (imaginary) melted ice cream. Making sure that they could not see her, she ran over to the glass store and entered, smiling at the woman who had greeted her earlier. Reading her tag (_Aerith Gainsborough_, it said), Xion smiled and pointed to the pendant Vanitas had wanted.

"One, please!" Exchanging a handful of munny for the present, Xion bid the woman "Merry Christmas" before leaving the store, and hiding the crinkly paper package in her pocket. She grinned cheerfully as she waved and caught up with Vanitas and Ventus.

It was definitely going to be a _wonderful _Christmas.

* * *

><p><strong>***TADAA! MY COMPUTER IS <em>FIXED! <em>Aren't we all so happy? This means more writing! xD  
>So this is my first work on my newly repaired laptop! WHOO! A review to celebrate? Yes please!***<br>**

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Er... So it was a bit OOC. Xion is a bit more like Yuffie here :/ But it was cute, right? Silly and fun.  
>Mini-Quiz! What are Vanitas and Xion? They're from Halloween Town, but I've never explicitly stated their forms. Anyone up for a guess? :)<strong>

**Thanks for reading, and happy holidays! If you stick around, something good may happen... *cough* A new 25-Day Challenge! *cough*  
><strong>


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